My parents are thinking about retiring in Florida, from Alaska. My dad is an avid fisherman who mainly goes out for halibut and salmon in his 24' aluminum hard top. Do you prefer the west coast of FL (compared to the east coast) for saltwater fishing? Why or why not? I would really appreciate your input on this, as fishing is pretty much all he lives for.

West coast. The water stays warmer in the winter so fish are more active. Tampa is a great place to fish because they bay attracts all kinds of fish, and you can take a 30 min boat ride out deeper for game fish like tuna, kingfish, grouper and mahi

Bait, you have to use the right kind of bait for certain fish. Earthworms catch a wide variety of species like. Bass, perch, sunfish and catfish, lures and crankbaits work for bass, muskies, and other predatory fish

Well recently in the last few years it got really cold here and the snook died. Large breeder fish survived but the numbers declined rapidly. They put a ban on harvesting. Season is still.closed. its seriously to reopen in September I believe